A brigade of vibrantly colored ducks swarmed the waters outside Lion Park this weekend, before a handful of brave volunteers stopped them before they could reach the rest of Dowagiac Creek.

No, this is not the plot of 1950s science fiction movie come to life.

On Saturday, members of the Dowagiac Fine Arts Boosters held their fourth-annual rubber ducky race, held in conjunction with the Summer in the City festival. This year, students and organization members sold 311 ducks sponsorships for $5 a piece, raising more than $1,500 for their annual Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp scholarship.

The sponsors of the first three ducks to cross the finish line received cash prizes, of $150, $75 and $50 respectively. The winners of this year’s race were:

• Jenny Callahan (#221)

• Deb Rohdy (#123)

• Ray Klomes (#95)

Klomes is a repeat winner of the event, with his duck coming in second place last year.

This year’s sales fell under expectations, members said, as they hoped to sell 326 sponsorships this year, one more than last.

The timing of the race happened to coincide with another big event for a former Dowagiac fine arts student. On Sunday, Rachel Mclaughlin, a 2013 graduate of Dowagiac Union High School and last year’s top duck seller, sang during the Brickyard 400 race in Indianapolis.

The Dowagiac Fine Arts Boosters support several endeavors related to band, orchestra and choir within the local school district every year. In addition to the Blue Lakes Scholarships, members give out an outgoing senior scholarship, which went this year to Andrea Hatter and Heather Montgomery. They also provided food and other resources for last year’s Young Americans Concert.